Sudan govt, rebels ink peace accord
Sudan's vice president and the country's main rebel leader signed a comprehensive peace agreement to end Africa's longest-running conflict Sunday, concluding an eight-year process to stop a civil war in the south that has cost more than 2 million lives since 1983.
The lavish signing ceremony in neighboring Kenya where the talks were based was attended by Secretary of State Colin Powell and other top foreign diplomats.
The signatures by Sudanese Vice President Ali Osman Mohammed Taha and John Garang, chairman of the Sudan People's Liberation Army, represented a breakthrough in efforts to end the north-south war that has pitted Sudan's Islamic-dominated government against rebels seeking greater autonomy and a greater share of the country's wealth for the largely animist south.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. The conflict is blamed for more than 2 million deaths, primarily from war-induced famine and disease.
Meanwhile, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said he was "excited" at the possibility of peace in Sudan.
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